How does Clay County want to grow? Community Forum set for Saturday

"We've had so much cooperation with Clay County citizens and leaders, we're expecting a big crowd for our Forum on Saturday," says Gabriel Cumming, who heads the outreach effort for the Mountain Landscapes Initiative "Tool Box" pilot. The Community Forum he refers to is scheduled for Saturday at the County Courthouse, with open-house hours beginning at 10 a.m. and a meeting at 3 p.m.

The Mountain Landscapes Initiative (MLI) is a long-term project by The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, an Asheville-based non-profit that facilitates funding for community projects in 18 Western North Carolina counties. Its purpose is to assist mountain-area communities and citizens plan for growth. The "Tool Box" is a pilot project to produce guidelines for responsible planning and development, starting in the seven westernmost counties. Partnering with The Community Foundation to produce the "Tool Box" is the Southwestern Commission, a Council of Governments organization serving the far western counties.

Clay County Commissioner Harry Jarrett has been one of the leaders of the "Tool Box" project since its conception in 2007. "We're encouraging everyone to come out on Saturday and take part in our Community Forum," says Commissioner Jarrett.

Here's the plan for Saturday: Citizens are invited to drop by the courthouse between 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. to see a short documentary produced by Cumming. The video is composed of interviews with folks from throughout the seven counties and the Qualla Boundary. The topic: Balancing priorities for growth in the mountains.

Then, at 3 p.m., there will be a group meeting to discuss the documentary, answer questions about the umbrella Initiative and the "Tool Box," and discuss next steps in the process. Light refreshments will be served.

Forums like this will be held in eight locations in the region, and results from those sessions will shape the agenda for a region-wide, seven-day workshop at Western Carolina University, May 13-20. The workshop is stage two of the process. Out of that workshop will come the first draft of the "Tool Box," which will be edited, published, and distributed in the third stage. "Tool Box" publications should be available both on-line and in printed form by the end of this summer.

Everything you need to know about the Mountain Landscapes Initiative and the "Tool Box" pilot is here: www.mountainlandscapesnc. org.?

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